The Cusack Challenge

John Cusack is probably my favourite actor - but yet there a good number of his films that I haven't got around to watching yet. So the challenge is to watch all of his movies, using the listings from imdb, begining way back in 1983. This is the year he made his first film appearance, and the year I was busy being a foetus/baby.

At the off I will say that it was a toss up between this and watching my way through the seven series of the West Wing again. But I've gone for the Cusack Challenge.

I'm not setting myself a time limit, and I have no idea if I'll track them all down (some kind of obscure ones in there) but to watch at least 80% of them would be great (that's a comfortable A in academic terms!) So its a fairly undemanding challenge, with flexible 'rules'. I'm totally selling it, I can tell.

There will be plenty I've seen many times before (Hello! High Fidelity) and some I really wasn't planning on watching again (ah Must Love Dogs, there you are). Also a good few I've never seen before. So, lets begin....

The Cusack Challenge

Bring on Winter!

ooh the nights are fair drawing in, as your granny might say. I'm getting prepared for the big chill to set in. My big knitted blanket is finished, my jumpers have been moved from the bottom of the chest of drawers to the wardrobe for easy access, and I got some nice new boots today.


My unambitious but cosy blanket of knitted squares is finally done:

The future

Today I'm wondering, 2010 = Twenty Ten or Two Thousand and Ten (or to Americanise it, Two Thousand Ten)?

Speaking of the next few years, the film 2012 opens soon, 2012 being the year we are all going to be swept to our doom etc. The poster says:

Can't help thinking "You were warned" would be a more apt title for this film, which screams 'rubbish' to me. Having said that, Woody Harrelson as the crazy guy who prophesizes it all and John Cusack as the limo driver/science fiction writer with all the answers, has some appeal. JC will almost certainly get all wet, a recurring theme for him (see High Fidelity, Say Anything, Identity, 1408, Being John Malkovich and others for further examples).

Point of disorder

There was a good fiery debate on teacher numbers yesterday in the Scottish Parliament. Members were particularly irked that The Cabinet Secretary for Education did not attend, with the duty for closing going to the Schools Minister. The headlines are scary - 543 applicants for one job, teaching graduates getting by on odd bits of supply work, the promised wave of retiring teachers not yet having materialised. Luckily everyone I know who has gone into teaching has not found it too hard to come by a job so far, although some are in their probationary year.

The requests to make points of order in the chamber can sometimes read as a bit comical the next day in the Official Report - and here's an example from this debate:

The Deputy Presiding Officer (Alasdair Morgan): I call Keith Brown.

George Foulkes: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. Do you have the power to call instead the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, so that she can accept her responsibility and reply to the debate?

The Deputy Presiding Officer: I suspect that the member knows the answer to that question. I have the power to call anyone who wishes to speak. In this case, I call Keith Brown.

George Foulkes: Further to that point of order—

The Deputy Presiding Officer: Mr Foulkes, would you sit down, please? I have dealt with your point of order, which was not a point of order.

George Foulkes: This is a point of order.

The Deputy Presiding Officer: It had better be a point of order.

Jack McConnell (Motherwell and Wishaw) (Lab): On a point of order, Presiding Officer.

The Deputy Presiding Officer: No. I will take Mr Foulkes.

Jack McConnell: Will Mr Foulkes give way to me first?

The Deputy Presiding Officer: There is no giving way on points of order, Mr McConnell. Mr Foulkes.

George Foulkes: You might pronounce my name properly from time to time, but that is another matter.

Is it not appropriate for you, as Presiding Officer, to exercise your power to call the cabinet secretary to accept her responsibility and reply to the debate? She was on "Newsnight" last night but she is failing to come along and answer the debate—

The Deputy Presiding Officer: Sit down. I choose from among the members who have indicated that they wish to speak in the debate.

Mr McConnell, do you still wish to make a point of order?

Jack McConnell: Yes. Perhaps the Presiding Officers collectively could reflect on the absolute need for the chair to recognise when a member wishes to make a point of order, regardless of what they personally think of that point of order. I wish you to reflect on that in the course of the day.

The Deputy Presiding Officer: We allow members to make points of order but once it becomes obvious during the making of that point of order that it is not in fact a point of order, we reserve the right to stop the member.

Blood money

The Scottish Parliament this week discussed blood donation, both in a members debate and as the Public Petitons Committee held a meeting up in Alness.

Alness Academy pupils presented a pettion proposing that donors be paid for giving blood - increasing levels beyond the rather low 5% of regular donors Scotland currently has to the higher levels in coutries where you can get some cash for your claret. So would it work? The reasons for not donating are many and various - from squeamishness, medical and travel restrictions and lifestyle issues. Indeed another worthy petition proposed that gay men be allowed to donate, given that blood is screened for diseases such as HIV.

But I'd stick with the doing it for free side - I'd rather the NHS spent the money on other things - and allowing a private company to do so doesn't sit well. Also surely as many Tunnocks teacakes as you can eat is payment enough?

Also I liked that Committee convener, Frank McAveety suggested that teens might be a tad obsesed with blood:

"I do not know whether the issue is a morbid fascination for young people. I know from my own teenagers about the likes of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Twilight" and the new show "True Blood"—which must be supervised, I hasten to add; it is a great show, but it is pretty wild"


The discussion did raise some good points about making greater use of technology to encourage donations - I'd probably be more minded to go along if I got an email saying stocks were low of my blood type. In the debate Rhoda Grant also proposed that people be allowed time off work to donate - akin to doctors and dentists appointments, another good idea.

Nice Slice

Chocolate Pizza? Oooooh yes please,hungry now.

Child Bride

Was having a flick through the new Argos catalogue the other day (surely the day when you don't head straight to the toys and jewellery is the end of your childhood) for bed sheets and the like (yes v.boring) when I reached the toys and came across these beauties:

Anyone else find them a bit creepy? As well as getting married, these babies also enjoy horse riding and riding mopeds.

I know theres concern over having sexy busty blonde dolls doing aspirational activities and these being bad role models for girls - but are these the solution?